In the Big Brother house, everyone loves to talk about how much
they hate floaters. Whether they're being told to grab a life vest or
making it to the end, being a floater seems to be the Big Brother
equivalent of being a Nazi.

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But what constitutes a floater? Thus far in Big Brother 14, I believe nearly every single HG has been called a floater by another HG at some point or another. So what actually makes someone a floater?

A Person Without an Alliance

The term "floater" may refer to someone who floats independently from everyone else, a HG who has no ties or connections and just exists in limbo. This season that role seems to fit quite to Dan's one remaining player, Danielle. Dan has coached her to throw competitions and he's doing the same. His goal is for her to exist in the nether space between powerful groups.

A Person Who Goes Where the Power Is

A "floater" might also be someone who floats from one person to another, depending on who has the power. This floater will always seem to be in an alliance, but their allegiance shifts week to week. It's still early this season, but it's easy to argue that all of Janelle's team falls into this category. Originally they were aligned with Britney's team, now they're with Frank's team. Joe, in particular, seems willing to tell anyone anything in hopes of being in their favor, thus making him the ultimate floater, going from person to person and making sure he's good with them.

A Person Who Does Nothing

A third definition for a "floater" might be someone who wins no competitions, gets no blood on his or her hands and simply floats through the entire season by being so light and useless. This season is full of these types of people. Ashley admitted she wants this role. Danielle is being coached to be this kind of player. And Jenn may be playing it better than anyone ever has, because I don't think the other HGs even know she's in this game. We also need more time to pass and more competitions so occur, but people like Joe could also fall into this category.

The problem with all three of these definitions is that they are all different. One person's floater is another person's loyal soldier. Is Shane a floater just because his entire team has been decimated this week (assuming JoJo gets evicted)? Is Ian a floater because he doesn't win anything or seem to get involved in the game, even though he's quite loyal to Boogie and is doing exactly what his team wants him to do? Is Frank a floater because he just smiles and gets along with everyone and doesn't make any enemies, even making a deal with Shane after the Power of Veto despite the fact that Shane was his original target?

I don't know the answers to these questions, but I know that until people actually define the term "floater," I'm going to hate everyone in the house who says they need to go after someone for being one. Floating is all relative.